


No Stranger

by SRLoftis



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Missing Moments, Season 1, bughead - Freeform, just a thing I thought about while I was watching the show... again
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-27
Updated: 2017-07-30
Packaged: 2018-12-07 16:51:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11627781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SRLoftis/pseuds/SRLoftis
Summary: She sat down in front of him with a smile. “Working on your novel again?”“Always,” he replied, grinning. “What can I do for you, Betty Cooper?”“What? I can’t come to Pop’s to visit my childhood friend Jughead?” She shrugged as one of the daytime waiters brought her milkshake to her. She gave him a Betty Cooper Original Smile™ and thanked him, though it crossed Jughead’s mind that the smile was more than enough thanks for anyone.Missing moments from the show between Jughead and Betty. Felt like we deserved to see a little more of their friendship.





	1. The River's Edge

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I was watching Riverdale again and started thinking about all the moments we might be missing between Betty and Jughead, specifically in the first several episodes.
> 
> They're obviously friends, we know they grew up together, but their first personal interaction is in Episode 3 when Betty asks Jughead to join the Blue and Gold. I wanted to explore a little more of their friendship and speculate what else might be going on behind the scenes. After all, they can't show us everything on the show.
> 
> So have some Bughead.

The door dinged as Betty entered Pop’s.

“Hey Betty,” Pop said in a cheerful tone, and Jughead actually took a second to look up from his computer screen. He hadn’t been expecting Betty.

“Hey Pop,” she replied in that classic friendly tone of hers. “Have you seen–”

“Archie? Sorry to say he hasn’t been in today. Would you like one of your classic vanilla milkshakes, seeing as you’re here anyhow?”

Betty took a quick look around, her eyes landing on Jughead, who was still looking at her curiously.

She pointed at him and said, “Actually Pop, I was looking for Jughead. And yeah, a milkshake sounds great.” She gave him one of _those_ Betty smiles. Jughead was surprised. She’d been looking for him?

She sat down in front of him with a smile. “Working on your novel again?”

“Always,” he replied, grinning. “What can I do for you, Betty Cooper?”

“What? I can’t come to Pop’s to visit my childhood friend Jughead?” She shrugged as one of the daytime waiters brought her milkshake to her. She gave him a Betty Cooper Original Smile™ and thanked him, though it crossed Jughead’s mind that the smile was more than enough thanks for anyone.

“I suppose it’s allowed. But I still have an inkling you’ve got something else you wanna say.” He raised an eyebrow and shrugged, the corner of his mouth turned up in a little smirk.

She took a long sip of her milkshake, steeling herself for something. Jughead wasn’t sure what it was. She finally took a deep breath and opened her mouth.

“Jughead… I know the two of you aren’t friends anymore, but you know Archie better than anyone. I…” Betty was fidgeting nervously, her leg bouncing, her hands clenching into fists and unclenching. Jughead had known her long enough to know that was a sign she was anxious about something.

“Kevin and Veronica keep giving me all this advice about what I should do, that I should tell Archie how I feel about him, that I should ask him to the semi-formal. But you and I, we’ve been friends for a lot longer than I’ve known either of them and I… I just… I need to know what you think I should do before I decide.”

“I’ve got no idea who Veronica is or even exactly what you’re talking about,” he said with a chuckle. “But you should calm down Betts. It’s _Archie_ we’re talking about. He’s your best friend. I think it’ll be fine, whatever you decide to do.”

She gave him a frustrated look and said, “But what _do_ you think I should do??”

He took a deep breath. “I’ve never been great at giving advice Betty. I feel like I should leave this one to Kevin. I’m not exactly a relationship guru.”

“But you know Archie,” she insisted. “And you know me. What do you think would be best for us? I mean, does Archie even have feelings for me?” She was staring out the window now and he wasn’t sure whether she was actually asking him or not. He thought maybe it was more of a rhetorical question. He hoped it was.

Jughead was pretty certain Archie had no romantic inclination towards Betty, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. And he hadn’t spoken to Archie in weeks. Things could have changed. Betty had been gone all summer. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, as they say.

“Betty, I think you should do what feels right to you,” he said, because it was the vaguest thing he could think of to say. “I mean, don’t you think it’ll feel better to get it off your chest, regardless of Archie’s response?” He took a moment to try and imagine his two friends in a relationship. He couldn’t see it. He knew everyone else did. Practically everyone in the town expected Archie and Betty to be married with two point five kids by the time they were 20. Maybe it was some kind of lack of romance in him, but he just couldn’t see it.

“You think I should tell him then?” she said.

He rolled his eyes and leaned forward across the table. “I think _you_ think that’s what you should do.”

“Right. So I should just… ask him to the semi-formal?”

“Is that what you want?”

Her brow furrowed. “I think so.”

“Then that’s what you should do.” He turned his attention back to his laptop, thinking that marked the end of Betty’s counselling session with Dr. Jughead, apparent love expert.

“How’s your novel going?”

A much more promising discussion. Safe too. Away from topics about Archie and love and asking people out. Jughead wasn’t good with that kind of stuff. But writing he could talk about all day.

“Okay. I feel like there’s so much more to all this stuff with Jason’s death, but I can’t get at it.”

“Doesn’t it depress you?” she asked, giving him a curious look. “Y’know, writing about Jason’s death? It’s so sad.”

Jughead shrugged. “I’m a morbid person. It’s a little depressing, but it’s the good kind of depressing.”

Her eyebrows knitted together again. “I don’t know what that means.”

He gave her a sardonic smile, his signature. “Like the kind of depressed you feel watching _Citizen Kane_. Or reading _To Kill a Mockingbird_. It’s sort of… uplifting. Makes you want to be better, to live your life fuller. Something like that.

Betty flashed him her famous smile again. “Why Jughead Jones, that was practically poetic.”

He shrugged. “I _am_ a writer. Gotta be good at something.”

She took a deep breath and finished her milkshake. “Is it bad that I just want to hide here for the rest of the day?”

He laughed, an edge to it. “If I said yes, I’d be a hypocrite. But _you_ are Betty Cooper, and Betty Cooper doesn’t hide.”

She allowed a small chuckle at that. “I think you very well know that’s not true. But you have a point.” She heaved a big sigh and got up, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “Okay. No more hiding for Betty Cooper. Thanks Juggy.”

“Not sure what I did, but always glad to be of service Betts.” He saluted her and she smiled and gave him a quick wave as she paid and left.

**-|xxx|-**

_Any chance you’re free right now?_

The last thing Betty wanted right now was to talk to Veronica, and she wasn’t about to have another heart to heart with Archie. She wasn’t ready for that. Kevin… Kevin wasn’t the right person for this either. He was too romantic, too sure that everything would work out how it was “supposed” to. She needed to talk to someone she knew she could trust. So she texted Jughead.

His response was surprisingly quick.

_Just working on my novel at Pop’s. Everything okay?_

_Not really. Mind if I crash your writing time?_

_Nah, I’m kinda stuck anyway. Want me to come to you?_

_I’m sitting outside._

It only took Jughead about twenty seconds from the time she sent the message for him to appear from Pop’s and settle himself on the sidewalk with her. She had her arms wrapped around her middle and it was pretty clear she’d been crying. It was kind of embarrassing but she also knew she didn’t want to be alone right now.

“You cold?” he asked, shrugging out of his black jacket and settling it around her shoulders before she could even answer.

“Thanks,” she said, her voice husky. “Sorry to ambush you like this.”

“S’okay,” he said. “What’s up?”

“I took your advice.” There was bitterness in her voice, she wasn’t even trying to contain it. She wanted comfort, but a part of her was also pissed off that Jughead had told her to do something that had ended up hurting her.

“Archie rejected you?”

She sniffed. “Not in so many words. Not yet at least. But he happily locked himself in a closet with Veronica Lodge right after I told him how I feel. So I think that’s as good as a no.”

“Don’t you at least feel a little relieved that you know now? That you can move on with your life? Stop asking yourself what if?”

“No!” she said, bursting into a fresh wave of tears. “It just hurts. I just feel alone and abandoned and like nothing will ever feel happy again.”

He shuffled closer to her and slung an arm around her shaking frame. “Sorry. I tried to tell you I’m not good at advice. But y’know, you’re not alone.”

She leaned into his arm and clenched her fists tighter, feeling the skin break. They sat there for a few minutes as she cried quietly. She wasn’t really mad at Jughead. She was overwhelmingly happy that he was here, that she could talk over this kind of stuff with him. They weren’t close like she was with Archie. Like she had been with Archie. But Jughead knew her like no one else, and she was grateful for that.

“You’re shivering,” he said after several minutes. “I think you should get home.”

“I don’t want to face my mom yet,” Betty admitted. “She’ll demand to know why I’m crying, or worse: she’ll gloat.”

“How about I’ll walk you home? That way you can warm up a little from the exercise, and maybe by the time you get home you’ll feel up to confronting your mom,” Jughead suggested, rubbing one of her arms under his jacket. “And if not, I’ll happily sit on the front porch with you till you are.”

She nodded. “Thanks Juggy. You’re a good friend.”

He didn’t know what to say to that, so he just remained silent as he stood and helped her to her feet.

“I don’t envy you, walking in those heels,” he said, eyeing her footwear. “But you look really pretty Betts.”

She gave a wavering smile. “Thank you. Very girl next door, I thought.”

“With a twist,” he said with a grin, poking her in the side through one of the triangular cutouts in her dress.

She chuckled and pushed him away a little bit. “Come on, we’d better get a move on if you want to get back to your novel at any point tonight.”

“Eh.” He shrugged. “My novel can wait.”

They walked side by side down the road, enjoying each other’s company, even in the silence. Betty thought about what he’d said earlier. No, she really wasn’t alone.


	2. Touch of Evil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You think what he did to you was worse?” he asked, curiosity colouring his tone rather than sarcasm for once.
> 
> “I think it hurts more,” Betty said. She looked up from her book then and his eyes met hers over his laptop screen. “And it was a little more recent.” She shrugged at him. “Besides, he stood you up on one road trip. You guys have been through worse.”
> 
> “Ain't that the truth,” he said. “And it's not like I'm not talking to him. I spoke to him last night actually, after I walked you home. Our conversation was practically civil.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, the story's named after a song used on the show, called No Stranger by Small Black.
> 
> In case you hadn't caught on yet, there will be one chapter per episode. Every chapter will be completely different lengthwise, as it just sort of depends on how much material I have from the episodes. I'll also be changing third person limited point of view, depending on whose point of view I think will be more useful or interesting. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> Lastly, I hope the texting format isn't too confusing. Let me know if it is and I'll see if I can find a better way to lay it out. (Betty is right justified, Jughead is left justified.)
> 
> Also, I guess if you guys have anything you particularly want to see or an idea of a scene that wasn't covered etc., let me know and I might be able to incorporate it into the story.
> 
> -|-|-

“You should talk to him,” Jughead cut into the silence, not turning his attention away from his laptop. They’d been sitting quietly together in a booth at Pop’s for at least twenty minutes now, and other than exchanging hellos and catching up on how Betty was doing, they’d hardly exchanged more than a few words.

Betty didn't look up from the book she was reading. “ _You_ should talk to him.”

“You think what he did to you was worse?” he asked, curiosity colouring his tone rather than sarcasm for once.

“I think it hurts more,” Betty said. She looked up from her book then and his eyes met hers over his laptop screen. “And it was a little more recent.” She shrugged at him. “Besides, he stood you up on one road trip. You guys have been through worse.”

“Ain't that the truth,” he said. “And it's not like I'm not talking to him. I spoke to him last night actually, after I walked you home. Our conversation was practically civil.”

“Congratulations.” She turned back to her book. “I'll talk to him when I'm ready. And I'm not yet.”

“Alright.” He shrugged. “I'm not gonna push you.” He turned back to his laptop and the silence resumed.

**-|xxx|-**

_I took your advice._

Betty wanted Jughead to be proud of her for some reason. And despite his own problems with Archie, he obviously wanted her and Archie to mend things. He knew what their friendship meant to her.

_That’s funny, because I took yours too. How’d it go?_

_He walked me to school. We talked. It was okay. Easier than I thought it would be._

_Does your mom disapprove?_

_How’d you know? Haha._

_Just a hunch from years of putting up with her special brand of crazy. And I know you better than you think._

_How’d it go for you?_

_I tried to make a joke and he got weird about it. So, not great._

_That doesn’t sound like Archie._

_It was about Jason’s death._

_Why am I not surprised? You could have started with a less morbid joke Juggy._

_This is me you’re talking to. Anyway, are you okay?_

_Yeah. I think I actually am._

_That’s what’s important. And hey, your friendship with Archie is special. It’s worth the trouble._

_Thanks. See you later?_

_Sure. I’ll  probably be at Pop’s later on if you wanna stop by for a milkshake._

_I have cheerleading practice and then I’m supposed to go to Chez Salon with Veronica afterwards. But maybe after that._

_I forgot you’re a bona fide River Vixen now. And girl stuff comes first, I get it. Sounds therapeutic. I’ll see you whenever._

_Maybe you should hang out with Archie. Can’t hurt, right?_

Betty knew Jughead missed Archie. He didn’t have a lot of close friends, and there were some things that girl friends just weren’t good for. At least friends as girly as Betty. Jughead didn’t text her back after that though, and she figured it was as good as a ‘I’ll think about it’. It was nice to be able to share this stuff with Jughead. He got where she was coming from. All Kevin wanted to talk about was how hot Archie was and whether or not he might be gay. And Veronica… disregarding the fact she hardly knew the girl, she wasn’t about to unload all her problems with Archie onto Veronica, even if she had decided to let things go. Sometimes she forgot how nice it was to have Jughead as a friend.

**-|xxx|-**

“Jughead!” Betty was surprised to see him wandering the halls after hours. He wasn’t exactly attached to Riverdale High, and as far as she knew, he wasn’t currently involved in any extracurriculars. Jughead wasn’t really an involved kind of guy. “What are you doing here?”

He looked up from where he’d been staring at the floor in deep thought. She caught the worried look on his face before he slapped a wry smile on.

“Looking for inspiration.” His eyes took in her new practice uniform. “Nice outfit.” He looked thoughtful and a little confused.

“I know,” she said, tugging at the hem of her shirt. “It’s weird seeing me in a Vixens uniform. It’s weird for me too.”

He raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “Nah. It suits you. Just trying to disconnect it from Cheryl in my head.”

She laughed at him and an unusual silence settled between them.

“How’s it going with–” he started to say, just as she spoke up with a, “So I realised–” They both chuckled at the awkward moment and he gestured to her to speak first.

“Oh, I was just going to say I don’t know if I’m ready to be friends with Archie again yet.”

He sighed and massaged his forehead. “I know what you mean.”

“Oh, did something happen with you guys?” She took a couple steps closer to him.

“I just… I don’t know, he’s been acting weird. He’s hiding something from me.” He shrugged again and adjusted the strap of his messenger bag on his shoulder.

Betty pursed her lips in concern. “Yeah, he’s different since I got home from my internship.”

“You should’ve seen him over the summer. It was like he’d been bodysnatched.” Jughead snorted in frustrated amusement, like he was trying to hide how much it bothered him.

“Don’t worry Juggy.” She put a comforting hand on his arm. “You guys will work things out, I’m sure of it. You’ve been best friends since you were kids. One weird summer can’t change that, no matter what he’s hiding.”

He raised his eyebrows as if to say ‘you don’t know the half of it’, but instead he said, “Thanks Betts. And y’know, you guys will be okay too. Just give it time. Things won’t feel so awful in a week or two.”

She shrugged and put on a halfhearted smile. “Yeah. I’m sure it’ll be okay.” She sighed and glanced behind her towards the gym doors. “I’d better get back to practice before Cheryl kills me.”

He grinned and nodded. “The last thing you want to do is upset Cheryl Bombshell.” His eyes rolled exaggeratedly.

She laughed and said, “Thanks Juggy, for listening. See you soon.” He nodded as she turned and hurried back into her practice.

**-|xxx|-**

Betty was shaking, her fists clenched, her palms bleeding. She’d meant what she'd said to Cheryl. In that moment, she believed she’d been capable of hurting her. How dare she say something so awful about Polly? None of this was Polly’s fault. Polly had cared about Jason, too much. If there was one thing Betty knew, it was that.

She felt a couple tears dart down her face. She wiped them away. She wasn’t upset. She didn’t feel like crying. It wasn’t like the emptiness and despair she’d felt when Archie had rejected her. She just felt an overwhelming rage. Anger like she’d never known it. She slowly and deliberately unclenched her hands and took a deep breath. She had an overwhelming urge to text Jughead all of the sudden.

_Got a second to talk?_

He didn’t text her back for a few minutes, so she resorted to pulling her diary out and trying to write down what she was thinking. For once, the words wouldn’t come to her the way they usually did. She just felt the hatred and rage balled up like a knot in her gut, and it wouldn’t unravel enough to give her the presence of mind to put the feeling into words.

After a few minutes of trying to put words down on the page, Betty’s phone dinged.

_For you, always. What’s up?_

Again, for the umpteenth time in the last few days, Betty was overwhelmed with gratitude for her friendship with Jughead.

_Cheryl. She just… she makes me so mad._

_Yeah, I was at Archie’s, I saw her leave. She looked catatonic. What’d she do this time?_

_It’s my own fault. I wanted to make Veronica mad, so I invited her out to Chez Salon with me, instead of V._

_I’ve really gotta meet this Veronica person, huh? Wait, so what happened?_

_Sorry, I keep forgetting you weren’t there. Veronica’s the girl from the closet with Archie. You know, all that stuff that happened after the dance._

_Ahh, okay. And you’re still mad at her._

_I tried not to be. That’s what the nice girl’s supposed to do, right? But I’m just so sick of being the nice girl all the time._

_That makes sense Betts, nobody likes being put in a box. But why Cheryl, of all people?_

_I don’t know what I was thinking. But she was being so nice to me. Turns out it was just because she thinks Polly killed Jason. I’m so mad, I could kill her._

_Wouldn’t blame you. I can’t believe she said that to your face._ _  
_ _Well, I can believe that actually, it’s Cheryl. But it’s a new low, even for her._

 _Yeah, when she said it I just lost it. I don’t know what came over me. But I told her to get out, before I killed her. I’m just so angry. I’ve never felt so angry before._  
_I just need to get my mind off it, I think._ _  
Did you work things out with Archie?_

_No, I came over to talk to him about something. Wish I hadn’t._

_What happened?_

_Actually, I was trying to help him. But turns out he doesn’t want my help._

_Sorry Juggy. I’m sure things will work out with you guys eventually. You’ve been friends forever. It can’t just be over, just like that._

_Are we still talking about me and Archie?_

_Yes.  
_ _And me and Archie, maybe. I don’t know. We’re in similar situations I guess._

_That’s kinda true. But hey, at least we have each other. Haha._

Betty could imagine Jughead’s smirk at that comment. Far be it from him to ever say something so sentimental with a serious look on his face. But Betty felt herself smile and the ball of anger in her gut release a little. Juggy was right. She was lucky to have a friend like him.

_Exactly._

She shot him a smiley face emoji to accompany her text and shut her phone off, letting the words flow out of her into her diary. Jughead always knew what to say to help her feel better.

**-|xxx|-**

Once Archie and Reggie had been dragged out of the Student Lounge and to Weatherbee’s office, Jughead plopped himself tiredly into one of the unoccupied armchairs, across from Betty.

Betty raised an eyebrow. “That went well.”

Jughead rolled his eyes at her. “Not like it was my fault.”

“You could have ignored Reggie. He was trying to stir up trouble you know. He wanted to start a fight.” She leaned forward in her seat towards him. “You know Reggie doesn’t take criticism well.”

Jughead gave her an unimpressed look. “So I’m supposed to be the mature one and pretend like he didn’t just call me a murderer?”

“Well, most of the time you’re more mature than he is. So ideally, yeah.”

He leaned in a little closer and said under his breath, “Coming from the person who threatened Cheryl Blossom’s life yesterday.”

She frowned at him, and he let a little smirk show on his face. He had her, and she knew it.

“Shh. I told you that in confidence,” she insisted. “And that’s different.”

He rolled his eyes again. “Betts, in case you didn’t notice, I’m not the one who got in a fight with Reggie. That’d be Archie.”

“He was defending you!”

“And now you’re defending him all of a sudden? I thought you were still mad at him.” Jughead leaned back in his chair again and raised an eyebrow at her. He could never figure Betty Cooper out.

“I’m not… mad. I just don’t know if I’m ready to be friends with him again.” She shrugged, looking kind of small. It occurred to Jughead that she didn’t like talking about this in a room full of people who would be quick to spread it around the rumour mill if they were overheard.

“Yeah, okay, that’s fair. Still. It’s not my fault Archie intercepted on my behalf. I certainly didn’t ask him to.” He scoffed. He couldn’t even figure out himself why Archie had done it. The last time they’d spoken, Archie hadn’t exactly been his biggest fan.

Betty looked thoughtful. “Why are you mad at Archie anyway? Other than the road trip thing. You never said.”

Jughead took a deep breath and sighed. “I can’t tell you.”

She raised an eyebrow and gave him a little triumphant smile. “Sounds like somebody else is giving Archie the benefit of the doubt too.”

He let himself smile a little at her words. “Yeah yeah, alright.” He hoisted himself out of the chair. “I should probably go see if he’s okay, considering he just took a punch that was meant for me.”

Betty gave him a warm smile, one of her famous ones. “Sounds like a plan. See you later Juggy.”

He nodded at her and left.

**-|xxx|-**

_Are you coming to the game later?_

_When have I ever willingly attended a football game when I didn’t have to?_

_It’s my first Vixens performance. It’d be good to have you there._

_I almost forgot you’d gone to the dark side._

_My parents are coming. I need you to offset their crazy._

_Sigh. Fine. Count me in._

_Thank you!_

He hadn’t planned on making up with Archie at the game. He’d come strictly to support Betty; it was just a pleasant secondary outcome. He hadn’t been able to find Archie earlier after the punch on with Reggie, but he was sort of glad he hadn’t been forced to thank his friend for the gesture. It suited Jughead just fine to have Archie be the one to apologise.

What surprised him more, though it was the whole reason he’d shown up in the first place, was Betty. She looked _good_ as a Vixen. Not that he’d thought she’d be bad at it. He just couldn’t imagine it before now. But there she was, looking like she’d been born to do this. It was like her final farewell to the nice girl-next-door persona she’d been trying to shrug off for years. And it was working for her.

He took in the little smirk playing on her face through the whole performance. He imagined that was for her parents. And a little for herself. She was comfortable here, doing this. It surprised him, but it occurred to him that if he’d been paying more attention lately, maybe it wouldn’t have.

He tried to find her before the game started, but she’d run off after Cheryl and Veronica, and hadn’t shown her face again, so he shot her a quick text instead.

_You were great. Pop’s after the game for milkshakes and burgers?_

He wasn’t about to tell her he was bringing Archie. He’d let her decide what to do with that when they got there.

**-|xxx|-**

“I’m proud of you,” Jughead said quietly as Betty watched Archie and Veronica trying to decide what to order.

She looked back at him and smiled, looking confused. “You’re proud of me? You sound like my mom.”

“Oh, god forbid,” he said, eyes wide. “I just meant you did the right thing. And things will go back to normal in no time.”

She gave him a soft smile. “Thanks Juggy.”

“You were great tonight by the way.”

“You already told me that.” Her smile was dazzling. It made him think back on the night, what it was like seeing her performing with the Vixens, seeing the confidence on her face, the way her ponytail whipped around her face, the way she had looked when they’d walked into Pop’s.

“Just wanted to make sure you got the message,” he said, shrugging. “I don’t know what I was expecting, but you really, you nailed it. It was like you finally knew who you were.”

She bit her lip, not something he usually blinked twice at, but it made something inside him twist up. “It kinda felt like that.”

He gave her half a smile and leaned down to take a drink of his milkshake. “Honestly, it can’t take that long to order some burgers.”

She laughed and he felt like his world was lighting up. Like everything that had been going wrong lately was slowly righting itself. It was a nice feeling.

“Looks like you were right, hey?”

She tilted her head at him in confusion. “Right about what?”

“That we’d work things out with Archie.”

She smiled again. “We were both right.” She leaned forward and squeezed his arm. “Things always work out, I guess.”

He gave her another small smile and nodded. “Yeah. They do, huh?”


	3. Body Double

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As he was approaching the door, it opened and Betty came out. Except… she looked different.
> 
> “Betty?” Jughead cocked his head and looked at her in mild confusion.
> 
> “Jughead! Hey. How’s your story coming along?”
> 
> “Uhh, yeah, one of Doiley’s scouts totally squealed, turns out Doiley shot the gun. The kid I talked to said Doiley’s some sort of crazy survivalist.” He couldn’t get over how she looked. It was still Betty. She was just… different. Her lipstick was redder than normal, her shirt was shorter. He couldn’t put his finger on exactly what it was, but she had an air about her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, just a quick note to say this chapter's a little lacklustre because I didn't have a lot of material to work with I don't think, but hopefully that'll pick up in the next few chapters. =)
> 
> -|-|-

_ My mom is legit crazy. _

_ What else is new? _

_ I’m serious Juggy! She doesn’t get that Jason was an actual human being. She just wants revenge on the Blossoms because of this stupid vendetta she and my dad have. _

_ Yeah, I saw the paper. Sorry. _

_ I feel like I need to do something. And I have an idea. _

_ This promises to be good. What’s your idea? _

_ Meet me at the Blue and Gold offices tomorrow after school? I’ll explain everything then! _

_ Why do I get the feeling you’re roping me into something I never agreed to? _

_ Will you come? At least hear me out? _

_ Fine. I just want you to know, I’m rolling my eyes. _

_ Like I didn’t already know that. _

**-|xxx|-**

Going in, he’d meant to avoid looking right in her eyes. She was a hypnotist of the worst kind, and he knew if he stared too long, she’d have him hooked. But her voice had been so earnest, so pleading, so he’d looked at her face. And then there’d been no chance for him. He’d tried to bargain, to make a case, but in the end, she’d gotten her way and he’d agreed. God, what wouldn’t he do for Betty Cooper?

His assignment, surprisingly, was proving to be more interesting than he’d anticipated at first.

_ Just spoke to Doiley. He denied knowing anything, but he’s definitely hiding something. _

_ What’s your next move? _

_ I’m gonna ambush one of his scouts. _ _   
_ _ You found a story yet? _

_ Yeah, it’s a doozy. Veronica and I are trying to take down Chuck and his cronies. _

_ Be careful Betts. Chuck is bad news. _

_ We’ve got it under control. But thanks for the concern. _

Jughead had to stop thinking about Betty’s problem and start thinking about his own. He had to figure out a way to ambush Doiley’s scout.

**-|xxx|-**

Jughead felt stuck. He didn’t know what his next move should be. And when he felt stuck, he usually hung out at Pop’s. So he went back.

As he was approaching the door, it opened and Betty came out. Except… she looked different.

“Betty?” Jughead cocked his head and looked at her in mild confusion.

“Jughead! Hey. How’s your story coming along?”

“Uhh, yeah, one of Doiley’s scouts totally squealed, turns out Doiley shot the gun. The kid I talked to said Doiley’s some sort of crazy survivalist.” He couldn’t get over how she looked. It was still Betty. She was just… different. Her lipstick was redder than normal, her shirt was shorter. He couldn’t put his finger on exactly what it was, but she had an air about her.

“Whoa, really? That’s crazy! I knew you’d get to the bottom of it Juggy.” She smiled at him, and it was her same old Betty Cooper smile, but it didn’t look quite right on the person standing in front of him.

“Yeah, I uh…” He put his hand to his head and adjusted his stance, not able to tear his eyes away from her clothes. “You look… different.”

“Oh, yeah,” she rolled her eyes like it was no big deal, “this is part of the whole plan against Chuck.” She glanced behind her, back into Pop’s, as if checking to make sure no one was watching her. “V and I came up with this whole thing, it’s nothing.”

Jughead raised his eyebrows. “Doesn’t look like nothing.”

“Well, someone had to do something about the way he and his stupid posse act, like they own the school or something.” She shrugged, wrapping her arms around her middle, her fists clenched. He realised he was probably staring a little too much. He shook his head and blinked a couple times.

“Anyway, you’re taking on the real hard story Jug. That’s why I put you on it. You’re the writer, not me.” She smiled again, but it still felt a little off.

“Are you okay, Betty?” His brow furrowed and he put his hands on his hips. “You seem… is everything alright?”

She laughed, like he’d said something funny. “Yeah, I’m fine. My mind’s just on this whole thing with V and Chuck. You should get back to working on your story. I have to get home before my mom calls out the watch dogs.”

He nodded. “Need me to walk you?”

“No, I’m good, I’ll be fine. Thanks though.” She smiled again, softer this time, and she looked a little more like herself. Jughead gave her a little smile of his own and opened the door behind her as she waved and started off down the path.

He watched her go and then stepped into the place. A cursory look around told him what he suspected but was hoping not to find: Chuck was sitting in a booth and he looked much too self-satisfied.

If he was going to get any work done, he had to shake Betty off his mind, but he was worried about her. She was probably just preoccupied, but Jughead was uneasy. He tried to shake it as he sat in his usual booth and pulled out his laptop. It had been a weird day.

**-|xxx|-**

Most of the time, Betty appreciated Jughead. Pretty much all the time. And he was doing her a  _ huge _ favour by agreeing to write for the Blue and Gold. She was pretty sure he had no interest at all, that he was just doing it to be a good friend. And she couldn’t appreciate him more.

But he was taking his concern about Chuck a little far.

_ Hey Betts, just wondering how things are going with your whole Chuck thing. _

Betty rolled her eyes. She had other people to be overprotective, she didn’t need it from Jughead.

_ Yeah, good. Should have the article all ready to publish in the next couple days. _

_ What’s your plan? _

_ Doesn’t matter, it’s boring. _ _   
_ _ How’s your investigation going? Have you talked to Doiley about what you know? _

_ No, I’m gonna ambush him tonight. Thought maybe we could have a meeting with him tomorrow afternoon, see what he has to say for himself. _

_ Sounds good. Count me in. _

_ Good luck with your Chuck thing. _

She didn’t respond to that, because she didn’t want to continue that conversation. She’d had enough controlling behaviour from her mother for a lifetime, and somehow she knew if Jughead had any clue what she and Veronica were planning, he would not be on board. She trusted Jughead, but this was something she had to do with V; it had nothing to do with him.

**-|xxx|-**

When Betty opened the door, she was disappointed to discover Doiley hadn’t shown up yet. She’d been hoping to avoid any awkward conversations with Jughead about her article.

“Hey.” He was leaning against the desk, his arms crossed.

“Hey,” she said, flashing him a smile.

“You okay?” His brow creased in concern. She sighed and gave him a resigned look.

“Why wouldn’t I be Juggy?”

He took a couple steps towards her, his arms dropping to his sides. “People are saying Veronica’s mom had to stop Weatherbee from suspending you both. What happened last night?”

She shrugged and crossed her own arms, avoiding his eyes. “Nothing. We made Chuck admit that he’d lied, that’s all. He’s the golden boy. Weatherbee wanted to punish us because he’s the coach’s son. That’s it.”

“I don’t believe you.” When she looked up at him, he didn’t look mad, just concerned. She rolled her eyes.

“Jug, trust me, it was nothing, okay? When’s Doiley coming?”

Jughead sighed and leaned back against the desk. “Should be here any minute.”

At that moment, he walked through the door.

**-|xxx|-**

“This is bad, Jug.”

“We don’t know anything Betty.” He was trying to talk her down. He wasn’t going to lie and say he knew nothing, but he wasn’t about to confirm her suspicions either. It was Archie’s secret to tell. He had to remain as neutral as possible.

“We know several things, actually!” she insisted, pacing behind the desk. “We know Jason and Cheryl were there at Sweetwater River. We know Dilton Doiley and his scouts were there. We know Archie was there, apparently with his dog. At 6 in the morning. Doesn’t that seem off to you? And now we find out Miss Grundy was there?” She threw her hands in the air in frustration.

“Come on Betts, that doesn’t mean anything.”

She stopped pacing to glare at him for a second. He wasn’t sure how to get her off the trail of Archie’s secret, but perhaps it was best for him to act as though he knew nothing and leave it at that. He would neither confirm nor deny her theories.

She sighed. “It means something. It definitely means something.” Without another word, she breezed out of the room, stopping at the door to say, “You did a great job this week by the way. Thanks for helping me.” And then she gave him as genuine a smile as she could muster in her current state of confusion and left. He was honestly surprised how real the smile looked.

This week had been weird. He didn’t regret agreeing to work for the Blue and Gold. It had been surprisingly fun. And it would help with his novel. But things with Betty were… weird. And he wasn’t sure what he could do about that.


	4. The Last Picture Show

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> His brow creased in concern. “Are you okay?”
> 
> “Yeah, of course, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”
> 
> Jughead tilted his head in confusion at her, raising an eyebrow. There was definitely something wrong.
> 
> “You just ordered a strawberry milkshake.”
> 
> “Oh, uh… yeah, I… felt like strawberry.”
> 
> He rolled his eyes. He didn’t believe that for a second. “Come on, spill. Before the rest of the Scooby gang gets her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, thanks for the comments and kudos. Hope you're all enjoying the story so far. If you have any ideas of little moments I could include, let me know.
> 
> -|-|-

_You free? I have something I need to complain about._

Betty grinned as the message popped up on her screen. Trust Jughead to chime in at just the right moment to get her mind off Archie and his shady summer activities.

_I’m supposed to meet V and Kev at Pop’s in a bit. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind if you joined us._

_I’m already here, so I will see you soon._

Betty had high hopes that, whatever was on Jughead’s mind, it would be enough to get hers off of who was and wasn’t at Sweetwater River on July 4th. And what they were or weren’t doing there. And whether they were or weren’t doing it together. This was the reason she’d agreed to meet up with V and Kevin in the first place. She needed to get her mind off of the mystery of Archie and Miss Grundy. V and Kevin were good distractions, but Jughead was a great one. With him there, ranting about whatever it was he had to get off his chest, her chances of a clear mind were at least slightly higher.

She finished off her current diary entry and got up to check herself in the mirror. Since when had her life gotten so complicated?

**-|xxx|-**

“Betty.”

“Hmm?” she said, looking up at Jughead. “Sorry, were you saying something?”

His brow creased in concern. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, of course, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”

Jughead tilted his head in confusion at her, raising an eyebrow. There was _definitely_ something wrong.

“You just ordered a strawberry milkshake.”

“Oh, uh… yeah, I… felt like strawberry.”

He rolled his eyes. He didn’t believe that for a second. “Come on, spill. Before the rest of the Scooby gang gets her.”

She sighed and stared down at her hands, which she’d clenched into fists. It was all the telltale signs of a stressed out, preoccupied Betty.

“I just can’t stop thinking about all this stuff going on with Archie and… y’know, what Doiley told us,” she finished under her breath.

Jughead sighed. It was becoming increasingly harder to stay out of this. “Betty, you’ve either gotta let it go, or you need to confront Archie about it. You can’t just let it take up all your time and energy. And besides,” he gave her a wry grin, “you were supposed to be here to hear me complain.”

She gave him a small smile and took a calming breath. “Sorry Jug, you’re right. What was it you were–”

The arrival of Veronica and Kevin cut her off, which Jughead figured was a good thing, because it meant he wouldn’t have to repeat himself three times. Betty had her worries, and he had his own. Not that he would dream of telling her exactly why the drive-in closing was such a problem for him, but he could spin the truth as well as anyone.

“Hey Jughead, Betty said you’d be here,” Veronica said, with a smile. “You had something you wanted to complain about I believe?”

Jughead smirked. “Settle in, order drinks, you’ll be here a while.”

Kevin raised a curious eyebrow at him but Jughead just leaned back into the booth, slinging his arm over the top of it.

“Believe me, you’ll get thirsty before I’m done.” He shrugged and Veronica rolled her eyes, but the two of them ordered their drinks and some snacks and settled into the booth anyway.

“Right, so what’s such a big deal then? Unleash it on us,” Veronica said eyebrows raised.

Jughead took a deep breath and opened his mouth. He’d been waiting for a moment to vent about this all day.

**-|xxx|-**

_That’s not exactly what I meant when I said to confront him Betty._

The message had been sent a few minutes ago, probably shortly after she’d left their booth. But it wasn’t like Betty hadn’t known what Jughead had meant. She knew it wasn’t that scene that had just played out at least. But she had her own fish to fry with him.

_I can’t believe you knew and you didn’t say anything._

His response was quick, and noncommittal, as usual.

_I was playing both sides. What else could I do?_

Betty frowned at her phone. Jughead wasn’t the person who usually gave her such unsatisfactory answers. That’d be Archie on a regular day.

Her mom glanced at her as she drove. “You better not be texting Archie Andrews, I _will_ take your phone away Elizabeth.”

“God mom, it’s Jughead. Can you just leave it? I’m not a child.”

Surprisingly, her mom left it at that for now. Betty turned her attention back to her phone in annoyance.

_The right thing, maybe? Didn’t that occur to you? I mean, what if Miss Grundy hurts Archie? What if something bad happens? This doesn’t feel right. And you should have told me Juggy._

_I’m Switzerland. Don’t be mad. It was the most morally grey decision I could make, not to say anything to either of you._

_I’ve been stressing over this ever since we spoke to Doiley, and you’ve known about it the whole time! I can’t believe you._

_I get it. I’ve been stressing about it ever since that night you had Cheryl over. That’s when I found out._

_That’s what Archie was hiding from you all summer?_

_Yeah._

_Aren’t you worried at all Jughead?_

_Of course I’m worried. But he doesn’t want to hear it. What am I supposed to do?_

_I don’t know, but I’m not just going to sit back and wait for Archie to get hurt._

_What are you going to do?_

_I don’t know._

Betty clicked her phone off and sighed quietly to herself. God, this was the worst time for her mom to go full crazy on her. It was astonishing to Betty that her mom’s overprotectiveness and controlling behaviour was the least of her worries right now.

Her phone dinged again, but when she saw it was Archie, she clicked it off again and ignored it. She was frustrated with Jughead for keeping information from her, but it was nothing compared to how mad she was with Archie.

She took a second to analyse why she felt so irrationally angry. It occurred to her that maybe she was jealous. But jealousy, especially for Archie, was a familiar feeling to her, and this was different. She didn’t feel like he was giving Miss Grundy attention that she deserved. She didn’t feel hurt or upset. She just felt angry and frustrated. And _worried_ , she realised. That’s what this feeling was. She was worried.

Was it possible she’d managed to move on from her dream of she and Archie as a couple? ‘Power couple’, she’d said to him. His comment from that morning he’d walked her to school came back to her, that it would be better in the long run. Back then, she’d agreed but she hadn’t meant it. She hadn’t believed him. But now, she wondered if he’d been right all along.

Her thoughts turned back to Jughead, and she contemplated her frustration with him. In the last couple weeks, she’d come to expect honesty from him. She expected him to be there for her. He’d been a good friend, he’d been there when Archie hadn’t. And now she knew why Archie had been so preoccupied, and that Jughead had been bearing that news on his own. She could afford to give Jughead a break, she realised. He was just trying to figure out the best way to be a good friend to both of them.

As if her thoughts had preempted it, her phone dinged again, with another message from Jughead.

_Sorry. I was just trying to be a good friend._

She sighed and let the tension leak out of her a little. She couldn’t handle being angry at Jughead right now. She had to deal with Archie and her mom, and everything going on with her family, and there was Cheryl, and Jason’s murder, and the paper. It was in her best interests to let things go with Jughead.

_It’s okay Juggy, I understand. I’m just upset about Archie, but I get it. Talk to you tomorrow?_

_Absolutely._

“Betty, this has to stop,” her mom said, drawing Betty’s attention away from her phone once more.

“Mom, please, I don’t want to hear it. You can’t tell me who I can and can’t be friends with.”

Alice’s eyes narrowed. “I’m your mother. I’ll tell you what I like.”

It wasn’t worth the fight. She left it at that and let the rest of the car ride pass in silence. She needed time to think, to concoct a plan.

**-|xxx|-**

Jughead wasn’t expecting to see Betty. He’d stopped by the Blue and Gold to grab some notes he’d left there, but he found Betty sitting on the desk thoughtfully.

“Hey.” He stood by the door, his hands in his pockets. “Just came by to get some notes I left here.”

Betty gave him a weak smile. “Hey Juggy.”

He looked at her a little more closely and took a few steps towards her. “You still worried about Archie?”

“Yeah.” She sighed and uncrossed her arms, planting her hands on the desk next to her legs. “I think I’ve got a plan, but I don’t know if it’s the right thing to do.”

He closed the distance between them and leant against the desk next to her. “Lay it on me.”

She sighed and folded her hands, fidgeting. “Well, I don’t trust Miss Grundy.”

Jughead shrugged and scoffed. “Me neither. She’s shady.”

“More than you know!” She turned towards him, an earnest look on her face. “I googled her last night, after my mom locked me in my room and wouldn’t let me leave. It was weird, there was no record of her from before a year ago.”

Jughead furrowed his brow and crossed his arms. “That doesn’t seem right.”

“Yeah! So I thought I might try and, I dunno, get some answers or something.”

Jughead looked at her in confusion. “You sound like you’re about to go interrogate her.”

Betty avoided his eye. “I mean. I wouldn’t say I’m planning an interrogation, in those words.”

Jughead smirked at her and gave her a knowing look. Betty always came up with the best plans. “So what is it that you’re planning that’s kinda like an interrogation then?”

She chuckled and looked at him a little guiltily. “Well, I thought maybe I could ask her to do an interview with me, for the paper. Y’know, as a pretense, to ask her about her past. Try and figure out if she’s who she says she is.”

Jughead nodded slowly. It was a good idea. And it was something that wouldn’t be directly harmful to Archie. In the long run, it might help him. He thought over the promise he’d made to Archie this morning, that he’d have to tell him if Betty was planning anything. But Jughead thought about it and he figured he could at least wait till after Betty had already talked to Miss Grundy. That way Archie couldn’t get in the way.

“I think you should do it. It can’t hurt, trying to find out a little more about her. I don’t trust her either.” He took a deep breath. “But be careful.”

Betty nodded. “I will. I’ll figure out a whole cover story.”

“I’d better get to class.” He stood up and made to walk away but he stopped and turned back to Betty, putting a hand on her arm for a moment. “We’re okay, right? You’re not still angry I didn’t tell you about Archie, are you?” The last thing he wanted was for things to be bad with Betty. He had enough on his plate.

Betty took a deep breath and smiled at him. “I’m not mad at you Jughead. You were just trying to be a good friend. I get it.” She put her hand over his for a moment and he looked at it and nodded.

“Good. I’ll see you later.” It was good news. He needed to focus on the drive-in and leave Betty to work things out with Archie. He couldn’t give up on his own cause just yet.

**-|xxx|-**

_I just talked to the mayor. Looks like there’s no chance of doing anything for the drive-in. I still kinda had a bit of hope, you know?_

_I’m mad at you._

_This morning you said we were cool!_

_Yeah, before you told Archie about the fake article. I thought you said it was a good idea!_

_I’m sorry about that, but I had to. I promised Archie I’d tell him if you were planning anything. But I waited till after I knew you’d already done the interview!_ _  
_ _Did you find anything out?_

 _Not really._ _  
_ _Miss Grundy told me the names of the other schools she’s taught at, and some of the students she taught last year. Including Jason Blossom._

_That’s illuminating._

_Yeah. But I kinda screwed up and asked her if she thought he was cute and at that point she bowed out gracefully._

_I am trying to imagine a scenario in which that counts as tactful, Cooper._

_Oh, shut up Jug. I messed up, I’m aware._ _  
_ _Why did you tell me to do the interview if you knew you had to go off and tell Archie about it anyway?_

_Because I thought it was a good idea! I don’t care what Archie says, I think Grundy is bad news._

_You could have told me._

_That wouldn’t have been true neutral._ _  
_ _I’m trying to be true neutral._

_Archie made me promise to drop it, so I don’t know where to go from here._

_I might be able to help you out with that._

_You really are playing both sides, huh?_

_As far as is physically possible, yeah._ _  
_ _Archie and Grundy are having some movie night thing at her house tonight, because they can’t go to the last drive-in together._

_So? What am I supposed to do about it?_

_Come on Betts, don’t be modest. I know you’ve learned some sweet carjacking skills in your years as an amateur mechanic._

_You think I should break into her car??? Are you crazy?_

_I don’t think you should do anything. I’m just letting you know she’ll be occupied._ _  
_ _But in case you do intend to exercise your sleuthing expertise, don’t go alone, okay?_

_Are you volunteering to come with me?_

_You know I can’t. I can’t take sides._

_Fine. I’ll take Veronica._ _  
_ _Oh, and I really am sorry about the drive-in. It sucks._

_I don’t know if I can give up on it yet._

_Then don’t._

_I’ll try. Thanks Betty._

_You too._

**-|xxx|-**

All Betty wanted was a milkshake and to talk about something other than Archie Andrews right now.

“I know you’re upset B, but we’ve done all we can do. It’s up to Archie what he does with the information now,” Veronica said as they walked to Pop’s together. “I mean, we broke into her car, I think we’ve gone far enough.”

Betty sighed. Veronica was right. But she felt like there had to be another answer somewhere.

“I just wish he wasn’t so stubborn,” she said.

Veronica snorted and rolled her eyes, a small smile on her face. “I’m sure he’s thinking the same thing about you right now.” She linked her arm through Betty’s and gave her a proper smile. “Come on, let’s just get a milkshake and talk about something else. You need to get your mind off this.”

They walked into Pop’s together and Betty immediately noticed Jughead, sitting in one of the booth’s looking forlorn. For once, he didn’t have his laptop open. He was just sitting there, looking sorry for himself.

Betty pointed him out to Veronica silently and indicated they should go sit with him. As they sat, Veronica gave a big sigh.

“You’re not going to regale us with another harrowing tale of your lost second home are you?” she said. “I don’t know if I can sit through another one of those.” Betty elbowed Veronica in the side and gave her a look. Jughead gave a half-hearted smirk.

“It’s alright Betty, you don’t have to defend me. And no Veronica, I don’t have the energy. I’m not sure I can fight anymore.”

Betty looked concerned as she leaned across the booth and laid a hand on his arm. “Come on Jug, you can’t just give up. Have you talked to Mr. Andrews about it? He’s tearing the place down, maybe he can do something to stop it.”

Jughead shrugged. Betty didn’t like seeing him so down. She squeezed his arm in solidarity and pulled back from him.

“I don’t know Betts, it just feels pointless at this point.” He took a steadying breath, which turned into a big sigh and adjusted his position in the booth. “Get my mind off it. How’d your _operation_ ,” he raised his eyebrows knowingly, “go? Did you find anything?”

Veronica gave Betty a reproving look. “You told him? What if he’d told Archie?”

Betty gave her a small smirk. “It was Juggy’s idea.”

Veronica rolled her eyes. “Of course you didn’t come up with the idea to _break_ into someone’s car. I should have known.”

“So did you find anything?” Jughead repeated. He looked a little more relaxed now that the conversation had turned to something else, Betty noticed.

“We actually came here to talk about something other than this whole thing with Archie and Grundy, so would it be possible to find a third, untouched topic that we could all happily engage in?” Veronica said.

“It’s okay V,” Betty said, and then to Jughead, “We found an ID with the name Jennifer Gibson on it. And a gun.”

Jughead sat forward, looking at Betty with wide eyes. “A gun? Oh my god.”

“Yeah. We spoke to Archie, we told him what we found, but…” Betty trailed off.

Veronica stepped in, “But he still doesn’t believe us that there’s something going on with her. He was just mad we broke into her car.”

Jughead sighed and rubbed his eye with the heel of his hand. “Archie. How stupid can you be?”

“That’s what I said,” Veronica said with another eyeroll.

“Anyway, he knows she’s lying, so we have to leave it to him for now I guess,” Betty said. “I saw you decided to show Rebel Without a Cause,” she added. “Good choice.” She grinned at him.

He gave her a tired smile back. “It made sense. Can’t say no to a good James Dean film.”

She leant forwards again and placed a hand back on his arm. “Juggy, you should at least try to talk to Mr. Andrews. It couldn’t hurt.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right,” he said, turning his arm over and gripping her own forearm briefly before pulling his back. Betty pulled her hand back too. Jughead’s hand on her arm had felt warm and tingly, like a static shock but more… pleasant.

He looked out the window, and Betty noticed how sad he looked. Sad and lost. She felt helpless, not being able to wipe that look from his face.

“Regardless, we’ll have a great night at the drive-in tomorrow, right?” He forced a smile onto his face and looked back at the two of them. They grinned back and Betty nodded.

“Of course. It’s gonna be great.”

“Okay,” he said, making to get out of the booth. “Milkshakes on me?”

“It’s the least you could do,” Veronica said with a cheeky grin and Betty tilted her head and smiled warmly at him.

“Thanks Juggy.”

“Right, one vanilla and one double chocolate coming right up.” He made his way to the counter and Veronica turned to Betty with a curious expression on her face.

“Okay, no surprise he knew you’d want a vanilla shake, he’s known you forever, but how in the hell did he know my order?”

Betty shrugged and smiled faintly. “Jughead is more observant than you give him credit for.”

Veronica snorted. “Apparently.”

Despite her circumstances, Betty realised that in this moment, she was happy. Things hadn’t been great lately, and this most recent turn of events with Archie had been a rollercoaster. But her friends made her happy. Jughead made her happy, she realised, thinking back on the conversations and moments she’d shared with him over the course of the last few weeks. She was lucky to have her friends. She was lucky to have Jughead.

**-|xxx|-**

_I spoke to Mr. Andrews. Turns out that was a mistake._

_It didn’t help?_

_Not in the slightest. He says he needs the business._ _  
_ _He apologised, but it’s not like that means anything_

 _I’m sure he would help you if he could Jug._ _  
_ _But I’m really sorry. We’ll just have to have an extra amazing night tonight to make up for it._

_Yeah. I’ll see you there?_

_Of course! I wouldn’t miss it._ _  
_ _On another note, Archie talked to Miss Grundy. Or whoever she is._

_What’d she say to him?_

_Maybe you should ask him. It’s a pretty personal story._  
_Even so, I still don’t trust her. But Archie doesn’t want to listen to me._ _  
Maybe he’d listen to you._

_I doubt it. But I’ll see what I can do._

_I hope he does the right thing._

_This is Archie we’re talking about. He always does the right thing eventually._

_I hope you’re right._

**-|xxx|-**

_Hey Jug, I’m so sorry but I’m not going to make it tonight._

_What? I picked your movie and everything._ _  
_ _You literally told me just a few hours ago that you wouldn’t miss it._

 _You know I’d be there if I could, but my mom has gone absolutely insane._  
_She found Grundy’s gun in my drawer. And she read my diary._ _  
She knows about Grundy and Archie!_

_Oh my god. Your mom IS legit crazy._

_I’ve been telling you!_

_So what, she’s locked you in your room?_ _  
_ _I can come break you out if you need me to._

 _I wish it were that simple._ _  
_ _She’s dragging me to the school with Mr. Andrews to confront Grundy and Archie, right now!_

_Did you text Archie?_

_I did, but he hasn’t replied. I don’t know if he saw!_  
_I hope I can make it later, but I doubt my mom will let me out of her sight after this._ _  
I’ll let you know how it goes later._

_Yeah, okay. Call me if you need anything._

_You too. I hope you have a good night. I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there._

_Hey, at least you tried._ _  
_ _Archie didn’t even text me to say he wasn’t coming._

_I’m sorry Juggy._

**-|xxx|-**

Betty walked into English and spotted a seat next to Jughead, who had his head down on the desk. She set her books down and took the seat, looking at him in concern.

“Jughead? Are you okay?”

He slowly pulled his head up and straightened in his chair, looking at her. He didn’t look impressed.

Concern overtook her face. “Juggy! You look exhausted! Did you get any sleep?”

He sighed and leaned on one elbow. “No. Did you?”

She sighed too. “Not a lot. How did it go last night?”

He shrugged. “As well as it could have. But hey, doesn’t change the fact they’re tearing it down today.”

She put a hand on his back. “I’m so sorry Jughead.”

“Hey, at least you accomplished your goal. Archie told me about what happened last night.” He gave her a sad smile.

She sighed again. “Yeah. I feel bad for Archie, but I can’t help thinking it’s better that Miss Grundy’s gone.”

He nodded. “You did the right thing Betts.”

She had the sudden urge to hug him. He looked like he needed it. So she leaned over and gave him a hug. He wrapped his arms around her too and it felt comforting and safe. It felt like everything might actually turn out okay.

She pulled back and gave him a genuine smile. “Thanks Juggy.”

He nodded. “Yeah.”


	5. Heart of Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So you and Trev,” he found himself saying, without ever consciously deciding he was going to.
> 
> Betty turned to look at him, rolling her eyes. “I told you, it’s a covert operation.”
> 
> Jughead raised his eyebrows. “But is it a date and a covert operation?”
> 
> She gave Jughead a disapproving smile. “Are you asking if I actually like Trev?”
> 
> “Yeah, I mean, a few weeks ago, you were, y’know… heartbroken. I was just,” he gulped, “wondering if you’re ready for something like this. As your friend,” he added for good measure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry this chapter took me a couple of days. I struggled a lot with Jughead's voice in this. Hope it all comes across within his character scope.
> 
> Also, I'm going back to uni this week, so updates may slow down a little. Just a heads up.
> 
> Lastly, feedback is very much appreciated, constructive or positive, so comments and kudos are great. <3
> 
> -|-|-

_Come meet Kevin and me in the Blue and Gold office._

_Any reason for this impromptu decision to cut class?_

_Kevin has something you’ll want to see. About Jason’s murder._ _  
_ _And we have frees. Are you morally opposed to cutting class now?_

_Never. I’ll be there in two._

**-|xxx|-**

The ball of tension twisted up in Jughead’s gut was stressing him out, mainly because he didn’t know why it was there. Or, more astutely, because he knew exactly why it was there and he didn’t want to entertain the thought for even a second. Forget about anything else, he couldn’t do that to Archie. Then again, Archie had turned her down.

He couldn’t let his thoughts go in that direction, so he cleared his throat and stood, continuing to contemplate the murder board. Kevin had just rushed off to class, so it was just him and Betty.

“So you and Trev,” he found himself saying, without ever consciously deciding he was going to.

Betty turned to look at him, rolling her eyes. “I told you, it’s a covert operation.”

Jughead raised his eyebrows. “But is it a date _and_ a covert operation?” He didn’t like the slight blush that rose to her cheeks at the question. And he didn’t like that he didn’t like it. He couldn’t deny that he and Betty had been getting closer the last few weeks, that things had changed between them. Maybe because she wasn’t as close with Archie, since the semi-formal and the ensuing disaster that was that night. Maybe because of the investigation into Jason’s murder. Maybe it was simply because, with all the recent chaos, they needed each other.

But they were just _friends_. He had to keep telling himself that. The gross mix of stress and anger he was feeling right now, that he didn’t at all want to acknowledge was jealousy, it meant nothing. He wanted so badly to believe it meant nothing. Otherwise, whatever this feeling was, it had sneaked up on him, entirely.

She gave Jughead a disapproving smile. “Are you asking if I actually like Trev?”

“Yeah, I mean, a few weeks ago, you were, y’know… heartbroken. I was just,” he gulped, “wondering if you’re ready for something like this. As your friend,” he added for good measure.

“I’m not heartbroken anymore Jughead. Archie was right about what he said, this was better for us in the long run. If I wanted to date someone, I would. But,” she said, turning back to the murder board, “that’s not what’s happening here. I mean, Trev’s a nice guy, he’s sweet, but I don’t have feelings for him.” She darted a glance at him. He wasn’t sure what that meant.

He took a deep breath and voiced the question he was hating himself for even thinking about right now. “So you’re definitely over Archie? Like, if you did find someone you wanted to date or, or whatever, y’know, just as a like, a for instance kind of thing,” he swallowed hard again, “Archie wouldn’t be… an obstacle?”

Betty shrugged and wouldn’t meet his eye. “Archie and I are better as friends. I know it took me a long time to realise that, but I’m past all that now. He and I really are just friends.”

Something in her voice made him believe her, despite the way she was turned half away from him and wouldn’t look at him while she spoke.

“Well, just be careful of this Trev guy. He used to be on the football team, which means I don’t trust him.” Jughead kept his eyes on the murder board, trying to pretend like his thoughts weren’t a hundred percent consumed by exactly how Betty felt about Trev, or Archie, or anyone else.

“He’s a nice guy, Jug,” she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her, and she had that soft smile on her face. “It’s fine. We’re just having milkshakes at Pop’s, that’s all.”

He nodded, one hand on his hip, the other coming up to settle on her shoulder, framing her own arm. “I know you can handle it Betty. I’m just saying, be careful, okay? Someone murdered Jason Blossom, and we don’t know who it was yet. Everyone’s a suspect.”

Her smile widened into a genuine Betty Cooper Original and she stepped in to hug him. He wrapped his arms around her instinctively.

After a second she pulled away and said, “Thanks for looking out for me Jug.”

He nodded and turned back to the murder board with a sigh. “You’re right about one thing. We need a new lead.”

She nodded. “And that’s all this is.” She tilted her head and looked at the board thoughtfully. “I’ve gotta get to class, but I’ll see you at lunch?”

Jughead gave her a nod and watched her leave. The ball of what he wasn’t calling jealousy had released a little in his stomach as she’d been talking. And as she’d hugged him. But it was Betty. Betty Cooper. They were _just friends_.

He’d keep telling himself that.

**-|xxx|-**

_Having a good time with Trev? Sure looks like it._ _  
_ _Twirl your hair around your finger, I don’t think it’s obvious enough that you’re trying to flirt._

He probably shouldn’t have sent the second text. Maybe he shouldn’t have sent any texts. But he couldn’t deny that he got a sick sort of satisfaction when she turned her head to look for him instinctively after she got the texts. Once she’d confirmed he was sitting in a booth on the other side of the diner though, she didn’t let her gaze linger on him.

It wasn’t like he wanted to blow her cover or anything. But he did enjoy taunting her a little. She’d been rather close-lipped about the whole thing after Veronica’s comment about dates earlier, and she’d acted weird when he asked her about Trev and Archie yesterday. And it wasn’t like he was following her. He always hung out at Pop’s. Everyone did. And if it just so happened that they were there on their pseudo-date that wasn’t a date, far be it from him to leave just because he knew what she was up to.

His phone dinged after a minute or so with a reply from her.

_I told you, I’m investigating. What are you even doing here?_

Jughead scoffed and rolled his eyes at his phone. She could keep telling herself that, but from where he was sitting it looked an awful lot like a date.

_Anything good so far?_

_Stop texting me. It’s rude._

_You don’t have to answer._ _  
_ _Unless it’s more fun than talking to Trev. Then, by all means, continue texting me._

He watched the back of her head as she talked to Trev. Unfortunately for him, she seemed to have taken him up on his advice and wasn’t planning to respond to his juvenile messages anymore. He laughed to himself and turned his attention back to his computer, still keeping an eye on her.

After another twenty minutes or so of horrifying flirting between the two of them, Jughead noticed Trev make his way to the bathroom. He got up and walked to their booth.

“Did you get anything good out of him?” he said with a smirk. Betty sighed and looked at him, rolling her eyes.

“Yes, but he’ll be back any minute, I can’t talk to you about it now.” She gave him a pointed eyebrow raise, as if to say ‘leave now’. “I’ll fill you in tomorrow.”

Jughead scoffed and picked up the half drunk milkshake in front of her. “Are you drinking a strawberry milkshake? What are you, pretending to be someone else? Didn’t realise you were that deep under cover.”

Betty sighed again. “He bought it for me, I felt bad.”

He was taken aback, and he imagined the look on his face said as much. “You sure you don’t like this guy? I’ve never once seen you drink anything but a vanilla milkshake for anyone.”

She took a steadying breath. “Just put it down Jughead. He’ll be back any second. I’ll talk to you at school tomorrow.”

He rolled his eyes and set the milkshake down. “Have it your way, Nancy Drew.” As he walked away, he was conscious of the fact that she hadn’t denied having feelings for Trev this time. He did not like the way his stomach dropped at the thought.

**-|xxx|-**

When Betty realised she needed to occupy herself if she was going to have any hope of calming down and getting any sleep, Jughead came to mind first. It was already past midnight, but knowing him, Jughead was probably still at Pop Tate’s, working on his novel.

So she called him.

He answered on the second ring. “Betty. Everything okay?”

She took a deep breath. “Yeah. I’m just… I spoke to my dad earlier tonight after I got home and I… found out some things about Polly.”

There was a pause on the other end and then Jughead said, “Do you wanna talk about it?” He sounded different than usual, a little out of it.

“Oh god Juggy, did I wake you up? I’m so sorry, I thought you’d still be at Pop’s.” She felt terrible. She knew Juggy didn’t sleep a lot as it was, and she’d gone and woken him up.

“No, it’s fine. It’s cool. Whatever you need.”

She sighed and ceased the incessant pacing of the last several minutes. “I actually was hoping you could help me get my mind _off_ Polly for a bit. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep if I keep thinking about it.” She sat down on her bed. “But I don’t want to keep you up,” she added for good measure.

She could hear the smile in his words when he said, “Well, I could send you the newest bit of my novel, if you wanted to read it and give me your notes. I know it’s about Jason, but it might help you get out of your head at least. I think you’ll like the new section.”

Betty let out a breath of relief. “That would be amazing Juggy. It’s exactly what I need to get my mind off the stuff going on with my family. Even if it is about Jason. Thank you.”

“Of course, Betts. You’ll be doing me a favour anyway. Give me a few minutes and I’ll send it over.”

“Seriously Jug, this means a lot. And I’m so sorry I woke you,” she said again.

He chuckled into the phone and just the sound of his laugh made her smile. “It’s really fine Betty, don’t tear yourself up over it. See you tomorrow?”

Betty nodded and, then realising he couldn’t see her, said, “Yeah, absolutely. I think I just need a good night’s sleep and then I’ll be ready to talk about all this stuff with Polly. Y’know, if you’re willing to listen.”

“Like I said Betts, whatever you need.”

She smiled and said, “Goodnight Juggy. And thanks, again.”

“Goodnight Betty,” he said and hung up.

She didn’t know what she’d do without Jughead Jones.

**-|xxx|-**

All the things Betty couldn’t say out loud, even to Jughead, about this new information she’d been given wouldn’t have fit in a book. Things were complicated and hard, and knowing what Polly had gone through was only weighing heavily on Betty in the worst way. She unconsciously clenched her fists tighter as she thought. Jughead was right about Jason. They could snoop around in his bedroom after the funeral, that was the easy solution. What she was stuck on was Polly. How had she missed something as huge as her sister being suicidal?

A voice in the back of her head whispered that it was because she’d been too preoccupied with her own problems. And that it shouldn’t have been so surprising to her last night when she’d heard it from her dad. After all, Betty had her own demons. She had her own secrets. No one knew about those, so it made sense she wouldn’t have known about Polly’s.

But she just kept thinking, what if they were more alike than she’d thought?

Jughead stopped pacing and sat beside her, putting a hand on her knee. “Betty, if you don’t feel comfortable snooping around the Blossoms’ house, I get it.”

Betty shook her head, leaning forward and putting her head in her hands. Jughead always knew when there was something up with her, even if he couldn’t always place exactly what it was. She thought back to last night, when she’d been crazy with worry for her sister, out of her mind with fear over her own issues. There’d been no other option in her mind, Jughead was the person she’d wanted to talk to. She’d told herself it was because he was the most likely to be awake, and because of the investigation they’d been working on together. But the reality was that he was the person she trusted the most. And he was the one person who made it all feel bearable, even just a little.

“It’s not that Juggy.” She sighed and looked at him, letting her hands drop. She took his hand in hers, needing to feel the comfort of it. “It’s all this stuff with Polly. I just, I can’t believe I didn’t know. I should have been there for her.”

He squeezed her hand and then pulled it away to wrap his arm around her and pull her into his side. She took a calming breath and let it escape, relaxing into him for a moment.

“I appreciate you being here to listen.”

He shrugged awkwardly without letting his arm drop from around her shoulders. “It’s not a big deal.”

She put a hand over where his was resting on her shoulder and smiled up at him from where she was leaning into his chest. “It’s a big deal to me.” He squeezed her in a kind of side hug.

Betty didn’t know what to do with the new feeling in her gut. Since last night, she’d felt a roiling mess of anxiety and stress welling up within her, but Jughead had come to the rescue, twice in less than 24 hours, and the feeling had dissipated and been replaced by something else, something infinitely more pleasant. It gave rise to a completely different kind of fear in her.

Things had been different between her and Jughead since the summer. Since Archie had turned her down; that had been the true boundary stone, marking a significant change. She was sure Jughead sensed it too, but she didn’t know if now was a good time to say anything. Then again, he’d been painfully obvious the last couple of days, bothering her incessantly about Trev and their non-date. At least she thought that was the root of his line of questioning. Right now, on top of everything else, she couldn’t bear the thought that whatever it was she was feeling might not be mutual.

That halted her train of thought completely because until this moment she hadn’t been aware she’d been searching for mutuality. But there it was. And now that she’d admitted it to herself, she couldn’t take it back. She had feelings for Jughead Jones.

_She had feelings for Jughead Jones._

She abruptly stood and adjusted her sweater. “Okay, right now I need to get Polly off my mind. We should focus on how we’re going to pull off a covert operation at Thornhill.”

“Right.” Jughead stood too, his hands transferred to his pockets. “Back to business?”

The way Jughead looked at her then, with sympathy and care, like he needed to make sure she was ready to focus on the investigation, it sent butterflies into Betty’s stomach. She had to shake that off and get on with things. _Later_ , she had to keep reminding herself.

“Yes. So do you have any idea where Jason’s room is in that _giant_ house??”

Jughead smirked. That too made her insides twist.

“Betty, if anyone can figure that out, it’d be you.”

She grinned back at him. He always knew how to make her smile, to see the world a little brighter. He gave her hope.

Hope was exactly what she needed right now.

**-|xxx|-**

There was a new feeling in the air between them. He felt it distinctly. The way she looked at him in his suit, the way he felt his face twist in an involuntary smile. There was _something_ going on here. It was undeniable at this point.

The one thing Jughead knew was that now was the worst time in the world for all of this to be happening. Betty was worried about her sister, she was focused on their investigation, they were going to a _funeral_ for god’s sake. But it was nice, all the same, to know she approved of his suit.

“You look nice, Juggy.” She still had that sweet smile on her face as she closed the distance between them and fiddled with his lapel.

He gave her half a nod. “You don’t look too bad yourself, Nancy Drew.” Her arm dropped away from him and she looked away a little shyly. He put his own hand on her shoulder. “How are you? Y’know, with all this Polly stuff? You good?”

Betty gave him an appreciative smile. “I’m good. I just want to figure this out, for Polly’s sake, y’know?”

He nodded. “Then let’s get to it.” He let his hand slide down her arm and gave her hand a squeeze. She squeezed back and they stood there, holding hands for a few heavy moments.

Betty steeled herself with a breath and let go of his hand. He felt the loss keenly.

“Alright Jug, let’s do this.”

He smirked and followed her out of her room. God, was he glad he’d decided to work for the Blue and Gold. Best decision of his whole damn life.

**-|xxx|-**

Jughead caught site of Betty ducking into a bathroom ahead of him. She’d left the door ajar, but when he reached it, he knocked, just to be safe. He could hear her crying quietly.

“Betty? You okay?” When she didn’t answer, he pushed the door open a little. She was sitting on the side of the bath, her hands covering her face as her shoulders shook with sobs.

Jughead slipped through the door and shut it behind him, settling beside her on the tub and wrapping an arm around her. She turned into his chest and continued to cry, her hands still over her face.

“Sorry Betty. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I didn’t know...” What he didn’t know was what to say, or what to do. This was news, to both of them, but Polly wasn’t _his_ sister. He tried to imagine what Betty was thinking, but he came up blank.

After a moment, she lifted her head from his chest and said, through the tears, “I just… all this time, Polly was keeping all this in… and now she’s… I wasn’t there for her, she didn’t even feel like she could tell me any of this! She must be devastated! They weren’t broken up, they were getting married!” This brought on a fresh wave of tears. Jughead just sighed and held her.

After another minute or so, Betty’s sobs had subsided and she pulled away from Jughead’s chest. She took a deep breath and blew it out, calming herself. Jughead kept his arm around her for now, wanting to make sure she was truly okay.

“I’m sorry Juggy, I just… lost it for a minute there.”

He gave her a concerned look. “It’s okay Betty. You don’t always have to be a brick wall.”

She shrugged his arm off and stood, surveying her makeup in the mirror and wiping under her eyes. “I have to ask my dad about this.”

“Do you… wanna talk about it?” Jughead was a little worried. Betty’s mask of perfection was back up and she was seemingly unaffected, though not a minute ago she’d been crying into her hands.

She turned to smile at him, but it didn’t touch her eyes. She looked sad. It hit Jughead right in the gut. Betty was upset, he was upset: cause, effect. It was a co-dependency he hadn’t expected, something else that had sneaked up on him. The level of empathy he felt right at that moment for Betty Cooper was overwhelming.

He stood and put a hand on her arm. She looked down at his hand and then back up at his face, placing a hand on his cheek.

“I’m okay, Juggy. Thank you for looking out for me. And for doing this with me. I’m… I’m glad you’re here.”

She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek as he took another deep breath and released it. Now was not the time to contemplate feelings and the jolt in his stomach at the contact. She dropped her hand from his cheek and took hold of his hand.

“You wanna go home?”

She nodded and he said, “I’ll walk you. Come on.” He pulled her out of the room by her hand. They’d have to sneak out unnoticed, and now, while everyone was still preoccupied with the supper, was a good time for it. Jughead shot Archie a quick text to let him know where they were and navigated Betty out of the house.

Once they were out the front door, Betty let go of his hand and let out a sigh of relief. “I feel better just being out of that creepy house.”

Jughead nodded, adjusting his beanie on his head. “Yeah, it’s suffocating in there. Like walking into a den of vampires.”

Betty didn’t speak for a moment and then sighed. “I have to go back in there.”

Jughead’s brow furrowed as he put his hands on his hips and looked at her in confusion. “Betty, let’s just go. We found what we were looking for, one way or another. You don’t have to put yourself through more of that.”

“No, I need to talk to my dad. Look Juggy, I’ll get him to drive me home, you should stay with Archie and the others for now.” She squeezed his arm. “Thank you, really, but I need to talk to my dad alone.”

He nodded. He could understand that. They both took fortifying breaths before he turned and opened the hulking front door, following Betty back inside. They made their way into the parlour where Penelope Blossom’s promised supper was being descended upon by the vultures that were the sickly curious townspeople. Jughead let a wry smile show on his face for a moment. He was one of them, he supposed. He’d only come to snoop in Jason’s bedroom.

Betty spotted her father and turned to Jughead. “I’ll call you later, okay? Thanks again, for everything Juggy.”

He nodded and shoved his hands in his pockets. “You don’t have to keep thanking me Betty. I’m always here to help.” He shrugged. “And I can’t say I wasn’t curious too.”

She smiled at him and squeezed his shoulder as a goodbye, turning to find her father and drag him home. Veronica and Kevin appeared next to him.

Veronica raised an eyebrow, looking from Jughead to Betty, across the room now. “Where have you two been?”

Jughead sighed and massaged his forehead. “It’s a long story. I’m sure Betty will fill you in at some point.”

Veronica crossed her arms across her chest, obviously not satisfied.

“Where’s Cheryl?” Jughead continued in an attempt to distract V.

She sighed, taking the bait. “Her crazy mom dragged her off. I feel so awful, I was the one who told her to say something, and now she’s in huge trouble.”

Archie appeared from behind Jughead. “I’m sure she’ll be okay Ronnie. Maybe we should go find her.”

“I’ll go,” V said. “This is all my fault in the first place.”

“I’ll come,” Kevin added, following Veronica as she walked away.

“I thought you were leaving man,” Archie said, looking at Jughead in confusion.

“It’s a long story, but Betty decided to go home with her dad alone, so I’m gonna need a ride. Hope that’s cool.”

Archie nodded, slapping Jughead on the back. “Of course. Come on, they’ve got these great appetiser things, I’ll show you.”

As Archie pulled Jughead after him, Jughead took a quick look around the room to see if Betty had left yet. He saw her pushing her dad out the door. She looked back at him briefly and nodded. He waved and let Archie pull him away.

**-|xxx|-**

_How’d it go? Did you find out anything from your dad?_

_He knew about the engagement._ _  
_ _I’m still processing everything else, honestly._

_Everything else? What did he say?_

_A lot. And the worst part is, I don’t know if I can trust what he says anymore._ _  
_ _He and my mom both._

_That bad?_

_Worse._ _  
_ _I feel like I can’t breathe._

Betty sat against her pillows and held her arms around herself, her fists clenched tight. She could feel the blood seeping under her fingernails, but the sting of it helped her focus on something other than all the horrifying secrets she’d uncovered today.

She didn’t want to admit it to herself, but when it had been a couple minutes since Jughead had messaged her, her chest tightened further and her breath came in shorter gasps. She’d been so relieved when he’d texted her. She hadn’t had the presence of mind to text him first, but she was beyond grateful he’d been thinking of her.

Only now, he was gone again.

Just after that thought entered her head, her phone began to ring and she saw it was Jughead. She let out a gasping breath and picked it up, feeling the blood slip against her phone case.

“Juggy?” She sounded breathless and pathetic, and probably like she’d been crying, though she’d had no tears since the Blossoms’ bathroom earlier.

“Betty, are you okay?”

“No.” Her voice was hoarse and strained, even to her own ears. Her breaths just kept coming faster.

“Betty, breathe. Calm down, it’s alright.”

The phone was shaking in her hand. “It doesn’t… feel like it’s–it’s alright.”

“Betty, listen, breathe with me.” She heard him inhale on the other end of the phone. She inhaled with him and tried to hold it. He began to exhale and she attempted a measured release of her own breath. “Just keep breathing with me.”

After a few moments of the two of them simply breathing together, Betty found she could get words out again.

She let one more deep breath out and said, “I don’t know what I’d do without you Juggy.”

She could hear the soft smile in his voice as he said, “Probably be starved for any interesting, intelligent company I imagine.”

She giggled a little and immediately felt the tension begin to leak out of her. “Thank you.” She hoped the weight she felt behind the words was detectable in her voice.

“It’s cool. Are you okay?”

She smiled to herself. Jughead cared about her a lot, she was realising. His number one priority lately seemed to be making sure she was alright. While it was slightly embarrassing, it was also highly appreciated.

“Yes, I’m okay.”

She heard him take a breath before he said, “Do you wanna… talk about it?”

She took another deep breath herself while she thought about the question. In some ways, it would be nice to share it with someone, but even the thought of putting the words into the air caused her breath to speed up a little and her chest to constrict painfully again.

“Never mind, it’s fine, we don’t have to talk about it,” he rushed out, realising her anxiety was returning. “We can talk about something else. Let’s talk about… Huckleberry Finn.”

“Our English text?” she said, surprise at his comment wiping the anxiety from her mind abruptly.

She heard him chuckle. “Yeah. It’s something we have in common and it has nothing to do with anything else going on right now,” he said. “And besides, I _know_ you’ve already finished it, miss goody-two-shoes.”

She laughed outright at that. It felt good to laugh. The pressure in her chest eased a little more.

“What, like I don’t know you’ve already read it through twice?” she countered.

“Three times,” he said without so much as blinking. She laughed again and he chuckled too.

“Okay, Huckleberry Finn. What was your favourite part?”

She smiled to herself as he began talking about the novel. She could get used to this. Jughead was always there when she needed him. She kept telling herself it wasn’t a good time, but when would it be a good time? How long would she have to wait before she found a _good time_? She was a high school student in a town where a boy had just been murdered. Her parents were certifiably insane. Her sister had been committed to a mental institution she didn't even know the name of. Lately, things had been anything but good times.

She banished the thought and focused on what he was saying. _Later_.


End file.
